Los Gatos Weekly-Times

Photograph by Skye Dunlap

Shelleigh joined a contingent of well-dressed canines at this year's parade.

Disappearing Act

Two hours later, there's nary a sign of the magic that occurred

By Dale Bryant

Something magical happened in Los Gatos last Saturday morning. Some 3,500 elves, angels, Christmas trees, marching bands, cookies and holiday packages descended on downtown, paraded past an appreciative crowd of approximately 30,000 and--almost as quickly as they had appeared--disappeared, leaving all who had shared the magical two hours humming in anticipation of the holidays.

The annual Children's Christmas and Holiday Parade has grown a bit since the first parade 41 years ago produced a mere 17 participants.

Although rain threatened Saturday's event all morning, not more than a few drops fell, the only casualties a few reindeer antlers fashioned of paper.

This year's parade featured Highland dancers, Sizzling Seniors, well-dressed canines, gingerbread Brownies, unicyclists beneath Christmas trees, an Italian gardeners' drill team, Big Bird, jugglers, a Country Western band, high school and middle school marching bands and the wild and crazy Stanford marching band.

There were rowers and yachtsmen, a covered wagon and a stagecoach, a giant groundhog, a furry bison, a TV kangaroo, very young violinists and bagpipers of all sizes. There were camels and llamas, a multitude of reindeer and even an abominable snowman.

Paraders smiled and waved from vintage cars and an assortment of fire engines, flatbed trucks, wagons, bicycles, sleighs and trains, all decked out in holiday greenery.

Some parents accompanied children, walking along the curb, occasionally calling out reminders to slow down or speed up, while other parents and grandparents focused cameras at youngsters in angel wings or elves' feet.

It's not for nothing that this is called a children's parade. The young people clearly are the stars.

That's not to say there aren't plenty of adults behind the scenes making sure things run smoothly. The parade is sponsored by the Los Gatos Lions Club and the Los Gatos-Saratoga Department of Community Education and Recreation. It's the Christmas Foundation, with its annual cotillion, that provides the funding for the event.

Judging by the imaginative costumes this year, it's clear that many adults--parents and youth volunteers, in particular--have been busy dreaming up ideas and helping youngsters fashion their parade attire, their transportation and their repertoire, be it singing or dancing, playing a musical instrument or simply smiling and looking cute.

And almost as magical as the parade itself is the amazing precision with which Los Gatos police and public works staff sweep in moments after the end of the parade for the cleanup. By 2 p.m., there's nary a sign that anything unusual took place that morning.

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